A member of the Muskegon Heights High School state championship
basketball team of 1954, M.C. Burton netted a school record 1,141 points
for the Tigers during his three‑year varsity career (this record was
later broken by his younger brother Ed).
In the fall of 1955, he entered the University of Michigan on
an academic scholarship. As a senior in 1959, Burton became the
first Big Ten player to lead the league in both scoring and rebounds,
with 460 points and 379 boards en route to All‑Big Ten honors, and the
Most Valuable Player award. Both totals established new Wolverine
single‑season records.
Drafted by the Detroit Pistons following college
graduation, Burton turned down an offer from the National Basketball
Association squad to continue his studies in medicine. He remained
active in basketball, playing 10 seasons of semi‑pro ball in the Midwest
Professional Basketball League and the North American Basketball League,
logging time with the Toledo Twisters, the Holland Oilers and the Grand
Rapids Tackers. He led the MPBL in scoring in 1963-64 and earned
NABL All-Star and league MVP honors during the 1967-68 season.
Burton was named to the University of Michigan Hall of Honor
in 1988.

Chasing a dream

In the city of Ann Arbor, on the campus of the University of
Michigan. In the building that Crisler Arena replaced - a temple
christened Yost - a young man played basketball. Before the Fab
Five, long shorts and scandal. Before the bright lights of today's
NBA. Before Magic and Michael; Dr. J and Jabbar.

In
college, he was compared to one of the greatest ever to play the
game.
"They can talk about this Cincinnati (Oscar) Robinson," said
the coach of one of Michigan's opponents. "If this man ...were as
well publicized and played for as hot a team, a good many experts
would rate him the better of the two."
The year was 1958, and the young man was named M.C. Burton,
Jr. Ask any young basketball fan you know, and they will not
know the name. That's because he never played in the NBA.
But he could have. He might have even become a star.
Burton set Wolverine records in scoring and rebounding that
season. The senior forward paced the Big Ten conference in the
same categories. A first team selection on the All-Big Ten
team, Burton capped his senior season with his team's Most Valuable
Player award.
These were the days of territorial rights in professional
basketball. Considered a solid prospect, Burton was selected
by the only teams that could draft him - the Detroit Pistons and the
St. Louis Hawks of the NBA. Each team offered him a contract.
Burton said no thank you.
The Minneapolis Lakers acquired his rights, hoping that their
star ball player, Elgin Baylor, could convince his college
acquaintance to come out and play. Once again, Burton said no
thank you. The offer remained open, but the promising player
never looked back.
You see, M.C. always wanted to be a doctor. He studied
hard for the chance.

A father sits
uncomfortably in the waiting room of a gynecologist office.
Surrounded by women, he is embarrassed and nervous.
Down the hall, a doctor emerges from his office and guides his
patient toward the waiting room. Together, they made their way
toward the man.
"Hi, I'm M.C. Burton," states the doctor as the expectant
mother introduces the father of her unborn child. With sincere
interest, the doctor shake hands with the man. "It's nice to meet
you."
Despite his size, the doctor's voice is soothing. With
finesse he communicates, building trust and confidence. Like magic,
the father's displays of nervousness are gone.
The doctor continues, "Now you take care of her. She'll need
your help."Beaming with pride, the man escorts his pregnant wife
from the building.

On the city owned asphalt courts, M.C. and his younger brother Ed
received their training. They gathered with a variety of other
youths from the area to play the game. Large crowds gathered
at the Baker Street courts to watch. They cheered the action
provided by the young men - Mert Johnson, Ossie and Willie McCarty,
Dr. Leon Smith, Kenny Howell, Ronald Robinson and many others.
The youth represented a seed that would develop and grow.
In the spring of 1954, under the watchful eye of Coach Oscar
E. "Okie" Johnson, the seed would flower into a longstanding
tradition at Muskegon Heights High School - championship basketball.
That year, Johnson's Tigers capped a 20-1 record with a
thrilling overtime victory against Flint Northern for the school's
first cage crown. The title was one of three Class A state
basketball titles for the Tigers between 1954 and 1957.
The Heights played a high-scoring brand of ball, defeating
their opponents by an average of 15 points a game. M.C.
dominated the state basketball scene that season. Only a
junior, he contributed a team-record 423 points - 35% of the Tigers'
offensive output. His play in the state tournaments earned him
a place on the Associated Press All-Tourney team as well as various
all-state squads.
A year later, M.C. and the Tigers rolled through the regular
season with a 15-1 record. Muskegon Heights advanced to the
quarterfinals before being eliminated by Benton Harbor. M.C.
ended his three-year high school career as the Tigers' all-time
leading scorer, with 1,141 points. (a mark later eclipsed by
his brother, Ed). Again, all-state honors flowed his way.
However,
Burton was not just a basketball player. He worked at a local
hospital while in high school. An all-A student at the
Heights, he graduated second in a class of 210. His academic
and athletic talents offered the chance for a college education.
In the fall of 1955, M.C. headed for the University of Michigan with
an academic scholarship.
He didn't attend U of M for the Wolverine's cage prowess.
Between 1950 and 1955, the school had finished no better than sixth
in the Big Ten conference. It certainly wasn't for a lack of
offers. Over fifty colleges and universities offered Burton an
education in exchange for his athletic skills, but Michigan offered
medical school. That's what he wanted - basketball was just an
extra.

Standing in the lobby of the
office, he handed the woman a folded slip of paper. "This is
for you." He turned and began to walk away.
Obviously pregnant, the woman looked puzzled. Her eyes
widened as she read the words. Quickly, she turned toward him.
"Oh, Doctor Burton!" He smiled.
I didn't see the note, but I knew it was about the impending
birth. The woman's desire for a son was well known to her
doctor. However, somewhere along the way, he must have led her
to believe that she would have another girl. Perhaps, it was a
reminder that the choice of gender was not her decision to make.
Her words were unnecessary - her expression told the entire
story. Her wish had come true.

After receiving his undergraduate degree in 1959, Burton was
accepted into med school at Michigan. Recently married, the
couple struggled financially.
"We were stealing money from Peter to pay Paul, and hoping
Peter would wait," recalled Burton. Once again, his ability to play
basketball and his love of the game were used as a means to an end.
During the summer of 1959, he toured the Midwest as a member of an
All-Star team playing against the Harlem Globetrotters. During
his freshmen and sophomore years, he commuted to Holland on weekends
to play for the Oilers of the Midwest Professional Basketball
League. As a junior, he played for the Battle Creek Warrior
franchise. In the fall of 1962, he joined the Toledo Tartans
of the MPBL. As always, Burton continued his studies.
In June of 1963, at the age of 26, Burton received his doctor
of medicine degree from the University of Michigan. A move to
Grand Rapids for his internship meant a change in his basketball
career. Burton requested and received a trade to the MPBL
franchise in Grand Rapids.
He led the Tackers to the league championship in his first
year in Grand Rapids. However, with the completion of his
internship, Burton was inducted into the United States Navy as a
medical officer. Stationed at the Great Lakes Naval Training
Center, the 212-pound, 6-foot-5 Burton was allowed to play the
1964-65 season with the Tackers, members of the newly formed North
American Basketball League. However, he was denied permission
to play with the team during his second year of service.
He returned to the Tackers in the autumn of 1966.
Signed to a three-year contract, Burton led the team to the NABL
title in 1967-68. The league's leading rebounder and
third-highest scorer, Burton was selected to the league's all-star
team and was named the NABL's Most Valuable Player.
Following the 1968-69 season, Dr. Burton retired
from the game. He opened private practice in Grand Rapids
specializing in obstetrics, gynecology and infertility in Grand
Rapids. His wish had come true.

I asked the question. He
had heard it before. He has seen it in the eyes of children -
inter-city and suburban. He understands their wonder.
He had grasped it in his hands - the dream of every kid that
ever held a basketball. Paid to play the game they love,
against the finest competition the nation had to offer. The
NBA. The chance to be recognized, imitated and idolized.
How could he turn it down?
The answer is simple. They do not understand the past.

Burton laughed as he spoke. Over thirty
years had passed since he turned down an offer of $15,000 a year to
play in the NBA.
"The money made my decision easier," he explained.
"Even the Pistons general manager at the time admitted that a degree
in medicine would be worth more to me in five years than a career in
basketball."
But that was then.
Today kids without a minute of NBA action under their belt sign
contracts for more money than Burton has earned in his entire
medical career. He knows his decision would be different.
"In my case, I was always going to be a doctor," said Burton
when asked what he would have done if yesterday were today. "I
would have played professionally, saved up some money to make med
school a little easier on my family and then I would have still gone
back. I was intelligent enough to know that basketball was a
five to 10 to 12 year segment of your life.
"It was a love affair with basketball, but I had the
perspective and the priorities correct. Today, I'm in my early
fifties and no longer play basketball, but I can still practice
medicine for years.
"I go to the games now and I imagine how it once was, but
there comes a time when you have to be into a different phase of
your life.
"That's why I lecture at schools. The thing that you
find so difficult to get through to the kids is that for every Magic
Johnson there are millions of kids that never get out of high
school. You don't want to kill the dream, and yet you want
enough realistic value in them that they're prepared in case their
dream is not fulfilled.
"Kids need more varied role models. The TV inundates
them with Mr. Football, Mr. October in baseball, Mr. 360 degrees in
basketball, Mr. Hockey. This is O.K. to a degree.
However, everybody goes out and buys a $180 pair of Reeboks and
thinks that is what is going to happen to them. Instead, maybe
they should buy the old $30 pair of tennis shoes and two books by
Hemingway or someone else just in case things don't work out.
"You can have two dreams. Politics, education, the
science fields, the computer age is here - there are so many dreams
that these kids can have. If they turn out to be Larry Bird
along the way - fabulous."

Local product Kenny Lane gave the Muskegon area its most legitimate
contender for a world professional boxing title in the lightweight
division during the 1950's and 60's. A crafty southpaw with
lightning speed, Kenny honed his skills under the watchful eye of one
time Muskegon professional boxer Pete Petroskey, who also managed many
other promising local fighters.
Lane's amateur career was climaxed
by a victory in the 1952 Grand Rapids Press Golden Gloves competition.
He turned pro in 1953 and soon began to attract national
attention. In 1956, the Chicago Boxing Writers and Broadcasters
named him the most improved boxer for that year. His upward surge
in the lightweight rankings finally earned him a title match against
champion Joe Brown in 1958. Kenny lost his bid with a
controversial one-point, 15‑round decision that many observers believed
he had clearly won. Calls for a rematch were ignored.
He continued to maintain his top‑ranked challenger rating for several
more years and won the Michigan version of the World Lightweight crown
in a 15-round battle with Paul Armstead. In 1964, five and a half
years after the first fight, Lane finally earned another title shot
against Carlos Ortiz. Once again, the southpaw lost a close 15‑round decision. Lane
fought for one more year. On October 25, 1965, at the age of
33, after
losses to future Junior Welterweight Champion Carlos Hernandez and
former Junior Welterweight Champion Eddie Perkins, he called it quits.
He finished with an impressive
record of
79-15-2.
In 1982, he startled the boxing world by coming out of
retirement at age 50 and proceeded to win three of four matches against
younger opponents. As a result, Lane became the oldest
professional boxer to appear in his 100th professional bout. In
2004, he was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
Lane still remained active in boxing after retirement from
the sport. He dedicated much of his free time to assisting area youth
at the Muskegon Area Boxing Club, training,
sparring with and working the
corner for some of the area's boxing talent.

A graduate of Manistique High School in Michigan's Upper Peninsula,
Harry Potter pursued a college career at Western Michigan University
(then called Western State Normal). In the mid‑1920s Harry was a
three‑sport star at Western in football, basketball and baseball (his
favorite sport). His teammates at Western included future
Muskegon-area coaches C. Leo Redmond and Oscar "Okie" Johnson.
Redmond had signed on as football coach at Muskegon High School and
persuaded Potter, his college teammate, to come to Muskegon as an
assistant coach in 1927.
Between 1927 and 1942, Potter handled the football and
basketball second-team coaching duties at Muskegon High School,
compiling an 84‑14‑3 mark on the gridiron and a 154‑62 record on the
cage court.
In 1943, he moved up to the varsity basketball position,
posting a 36‑26 record in three seasons, before succeeding Redmond as
head coach of the Big Red football squad in 1947. His 1951 team,
under the direction of quarterback Earl Morrall, went undefeated and was
named Class A state champions. Potter guided the Big Reds to a
57‑24‑8 mark and three Southwestern Conference crowns in his 10 years at
the helm.
But possibly Potter's proudest personal achievement at Muskegon was the
establishment of a baseball program in 1937 to represent the Port City
in Southwest Conference competition. He coached the Big Red
baseball team for 30 years, including a then-record streak of 55
consecutive victories between 1941 and 1945. Potter remained as
athletic director at Muskegon until his retirement in 1966.

Jack Tighe enjoyed a lengthy baseball career as a player, coach, scout
and successful manager at all minor league levels, plus a brief stint in
the majors as pilot of the Detroit Tigers in the late 1950s. His
long association with baseball spanned 46 years ‑ from 1936 to his
retirement in 1982.
Tighe was a promising catching prospect in the Detroit
organization in the late 1930s. But Tiger management also recognized
his leadership potential and assigned him to be catcher/manager of their
class C Muskegon Reds of the newly formed Michigan State League in 1940.
Tighe proved to be a crafty, aggressive manager admired by his players
and by Muskegon fans alike. His young Reds of 1940‑41 failed to
win pennants but were an exciting and talented club. Several of
his players went on to major league careers, notably Johnny Lipon and
Stubby Overmire. During his tour as Reds' manager, Jack met and
married a local girl, Beverly Yeager, and the couple decided to make
Spring Lake their permanent home.
World War II put the Michigan State League out of business,
but the parent Tigers retained Tighe as a bullpen catcher and coach.
He resumed his managerial career with the Cleveland organization,
managing their Batavia, NY club from 1944‑47. He returned to the
Detroit system in 1948 to manage the Flint Arrows, a member of the newly
formed Class A Central League. After two winning
seasons in Flint, he moved on to Williamsport, PA, Toledo, and Buffalo,
the latter being Detroit's Top AAA farm club. He became the
Tigers' minor league field director in 1954 and then joined the Detroit
coaching staff under Bucky Harris. For 1957, Jack was appointed
Tigers' manager to replace Harris. He led the Bengals to a
somewhat disappointing 78‑76 record, and the following year, after
another dismal start, he was replaced by Bill Norman.
Tighe remained active as a scout with several clubs,
including Detroit. He resumed his managing career in 1967 and led
the AAA Toledo Mud Hens to a championship in 1968, he was honored by
The Sporting News as minor league manager of the year for his
efforts. He retired from baseball in 1982 and relocated to
Florida.

Over a span of 26 years, Elmer Walcott guided the basketball squad at
Western Michigan Christian to a 299‑163 regular season record. In
post‑season play, Walcott's teams notched an impressive 101‑22 mark en
route to six visits to the state cage finals.
His 1958, 1962,
1965, and 1970 squads earned Class C state crowns, while his team
finished as runner‑up in Class C in 1959, and in Class D in 1979.
Walcott's career total of 400 cage victories rank him among Michigan's
top prep coaches in the state.
Walcott's success continued on the tennis courts, where his Warriors grabbed
the 1958 Class C‑D tennis crown. He retired from coaching
following the 1978‑1979 season. The old coach served as Mayor of Muskegon
from 1982 through 1985. In 1992, he returned to coaching at
Western Michigan Christian High School, handling the Warriors girls cage
squad.